There's Us
by DetectiveBeckett
Summary: Martha got Kate thinking after running into each other at Starbucks. After a simple set up to be around one another after work, the two start to give in as they've wanted to for so long.
1. Chapter 1

Leaning against the counter, Kate let out a sigh as she waited for her coffee. Running around for coffee was a weird thing. It felt like it's been years since she's gotten her own coffee in the morning. Richard Castle was the one who was supposed to deliver it directly to her. As bad as that was to admit, even to herself, she liked that he did her the favor. She liked knowing that someone thought about her enough to buy something as simple as a cup of coffee. Maybe that was sad. Or maybe that just showed how alone she was.

In about an hour, she'd be in the precinct and Castle would be walking in with a cup of coffee for her. So why was she even wasting her time in a Starbucks? It was early in the morning and after a restless night, she needed to get out. Being alone and completely was one thing. Being alone with a bunch of strangers was different though. It wasn't as bad. Or maybe it was worse. Possibly a whole new brand of pathetic.

"What are you doing up so early?" A familiar voice sounded. Kate was barely aware that the question was directed to her until an even more familiar redhead, Martha, came into view.

"Martha," she returned a genuine smile, trying to think of a way to answer the question. They spoke sometimes, but it wasn't like Kate was insanely close with Martha. Actually, she wasn't insanely close to anyone.

The woman to Kate's senior moved beside her and leaned against the counter a couple inches away. "Couldn't sleep?" she sighed. "Neither could I."

"I slept fine." Kate said softly. She heard her name being called and turned around to accept her coffee. She sipped it appreciatively as she looked back over at Martha.

"Oh please. Then what are you doing out right now? You don't have to be working for another hour or so. You can't lie to me. You work with my son who happens to tell his mother everything."

"Oh, charming," she teased, offering a smirk. Martha laughed in response.

"He talks about you enough for me to know something's wrong."

She raised a brow. "He talks about me?" curiosity had no shot at staying hidden. It had gotten the best of her before she could really even process it. She could tell that the question surprised her partner's mother.

"Does he ever," she dropped this information without any shame even though there was a good chance Rick wouldn't want her knowing. "Darling he talks about you every chance he gets. It's his discreet way of letting me know that he likes you."

The shock of hearing the words spoken out loud took over. Kate was exceptional when it came to keeping a straight face, but her jaw dropped before she could even process it. "Wait, he what?"

Martha's name was called and she grabbed her coffee before leading Kate over to a table by one of the windows. They sat down and the detective watched all of the early birds passing by. Somehow, this was the most private their conversation would be at the moment.

She sipped her coffee and even though Kate knew it wasn't the case, it almost felt like Martha was taking these pauses to torture her. Finally, she pulled the cup away from her lips, a smile intact.

"He likes you. Don't tell me you haven't caught on. You're a detective, aren't you? He told me you were good."

"Yes, I'm a detective. I investigate murders. I can honestly say I've never played match maker." She smirked.

The redhead let out a sigh. Not because she was annoyed with Kate, but because she was confused. To her, it was the most obvious thing that her son had feelings for this woman. "He's been working with you for a while now," she pointed out, although assuming that would be a good enough explanation wasn't an option.

"Yeah but that's only because he's writing those books. One of the characters is based off of me, so Castle just needs to do his research. It's his job."

"My son doesn't need to do that much research on one single person."

The certainty in Martha's voice made Kate skeptical. "This is a new set of characters. Getting it right is important to him," she felt like that wasn't enough of an argument. "He likes the murder scenes. It's an opportunity that not many authors get. He's probably soaking it up."

Martha shook her head. "That may be so, but those are just luxuries associated with the actual prize."

Kate opened her mouth to speak, but her mouth was ahead of her brain. It was such an odd feeling. One that she seldom experienced.

"I think we should just leave it at that for now," Martha smiled as she stood up.

Kate got up with her and sipped her coffee because still, she couldn't think of what to say.

"Keep it in mind," Martha said softly. "I'm rooting for you two."

Now that was a bit much for Kate to think about.

"Have a good day. Tell my son I said hello," she started to walk out alongside the clueless detective. "Or maybe you shouldn't. That would just make him nervous," she winked before they went their separate ways.

Kate walked a couple feet before stopping to lean her back against the building, a sigh escaping her. How could she act like she didn't hear this? How could she look at Rick and not say a word about it? Better yet, how was she supposed to stop herself from being so curious?


	2. Chapter 2

Walking passed everyone and up the stairs of the brownstone, Kate allowed herself into the brownstone that was crowded with cops and all the makings of an investigation. This was exactly what she needed to get her mind off of the conversation she had with Martha just a little bit earlier. Even though the main topic of their conversation happened to be the man she worked long hours with.

She heard voices down the hall of the unfamiliar home and followed them to the living room. Parts of the room were taped off and pictures were being taken. "What do we have-" Before she could finish, her eyes fell upon the victim. A brunette woman, mid twenties stood dead. Yes, stood. A large arrow pierced her body, the pointed tip well into the wall, which held her up. Okay, so she wasn't necessarily standing there, but was limp.

"Where's Castle? He's going to love this one." If anyone heard that, it wasn't exactly meant to be. This was an odd case. She's seen a lot of odd and honestly, these were the cases she loved the most. Some people were insane. You had to be a whole different type of insane to do something like this to a person and though it was more than unfortunate, it was interesting to solve.

"Right here," Richard's voice could be heard. Kate looked over her shoulder in time to watch him walk in with two cups of coffee, and catch his expression as his eyes fell on the victim. "Wow."

She nodded. "I know."

"A Juicy Couture sweat suit? That's an expensive piece of material. Too bad she got blood on it," he said almost conversationally as he stood next to Kate, handing her a cup of coffee.

"She's dead Castle," her voice was flat as she brought the cup to her lips. She sipped her coffee appreciatively.

He nodded his head. "You're right," he let out a deep breath, almost dramatically. "I doubt she even cares that much."

Silence fell over for a moment. How do you respond to that anyway? After countless remarks like that, Kate still hasn't figured it out.

"You would look good in something like that," he continued when he realized Kate wasn't going to break the silence. "I know they run pricy, but I hear they're comfortable," he looked over at her and she had that face on where anyone who didn't know her would think she was getting mad, but he knew she was just trying not to laugh. With a straight as face as that, it was far too obvious. "Maybe she'll let you borrow hers."

"Good idea. I'll run that by her when she's not dead anymore."

Rick loved that she actually shot back with a smart remark, but he wasn't going to lose his game face. "Okay."

"It might be a while."

"That's fine. I can wait."

She nodded her head. "Of course you can," she said as she saw Esposito and Ryan across the room. They were deep in conversation. At least someone was working.

She walked up to him and Rick followed. "What do you have?" she was cutting right to the chase.

"Her name is Jordan Hilton-Davis. She's a stay at home wife, recently divorced from Kyle Banks and remarried to Brandon Davis." Esposito said as he put his hands in his pockets.

"How recent was this divorce?" Kate asked as she crossed her arms against her chest.

"About three months ago."

"I want to talk to him."

"It wasn't him," Richard said in a matter of fact tone, sheer confidence.

"I'm sorry, are you a crystal ball or something?" She raised a brow.

He shook his head. "That's insane," he chuckled. "But a magic lamp? Definitely. Rub me and I'll give you three wishes."

She couldn't believe the things he said sometimes. No matter what, he'd always have a comeback and even if it was lame, it was still a comeback. She went to say give her perspective – and oh did she have perspective – but her phone went off before any words came out of her mouth. Looking at her phone, she didn't recognize the number, but answered it anyway. "Beckett."

"Oh I know that. I called you."

It was Martha.

Kate looked up at the guys. "I have to take this," she said before she stepped away from the guys to hold this private conversation. Maybe the guys would get some work done if she wasn't around to be tormented. "Hey Martha, how'd you get my number?"

"You work with my son darling," she said as though that was enough of an explanation. It was. "What are you doing tonight?"

She shrugged her shoulders as though Martha could actually see her, but the silence was enough for Martha to realize that the answer was nothing.

"Good. You can come over tonight for dinner."

The detective's eyes widened. How would she explain that to Richard? "Seriously? What's the sudden inspiration?" she was friendly with the entire family, but it didn't make things any less awkward.

"My sudden inspiration is my son. A single father. Emphasis on single"

"Please don't set anything up. Can't this just be friendly?" she asked even though she knew that would be very impossible. Sure as hell, she'd try anyway.

"Oh of course," Martha had the biggest smile on her face. Kate didn't need to see her to know. "So I'll see you tonight."

Kate didn't exactly get the chance to say no, but before she knew it, she heard the phone click and the call had ended.

Fantastic.

Richard started toward her and she put her phone in her pocket. "Anything good?" he asked, obviously referring to the phone call.

"You're a little nosy, aren't you?"

"Oh I know," he agreed. "So who was that?"

"Your mom."

He laughed. "Oh come on Kate. I know you're not as witty as I am, but seriously? My mom? You couldn't come up with anything better? I'll tell you, you've got the looks, but not the jokes," he shook his head. "So what did my mom say?" he asked in a sarcastic tone.

She thought it was going to be difficult explaining this one to him, but he was being enough of a jerk, that she decided on being upfront. "I'm coming over for dinner tonight. She has this crazy idea that you have a crush on me and I think she's trying to play matchmaker." Okay, the crush part wasn't supposed to come out. Once you got her fired though, there was no telling where things might go.

For the first time ever, Richard Castle stood completely silent. She wasn't sure if that was more awkward for him or for herself. What she did know for sure was that tonight was going to be nothing less than interesting.


	3. Chapter 3

It was weird knowing that Kate was going to be going home with Rick for dinner with his family. She knew the family and she liked them, but it was weird without a doubt under the circumstances. Weird in the sense that Martha told her that Rick liked her. Weirder in the sense that Kate told Rick that to shut him up. Once it had worked, things just weren't the way she wanted. Learning how awkward it could be when Rick was quiet wasn't something she ever thought she'd hate. There were no jokes the entire day. It was all work.

Now that it was time to go, Kate stood outside, leaning against her car. She was waiting for him to come out since he was talking to Lanie last she checked. That made her more than uneasy, but she couldn't question it in front of everyone. When he came out, they stared each other down for a moment before he started to walk toward his car.

"Castle, get over here," she called out.

He stopped and turned around to face her. "Is this a hostage situation?"

Finally, a joke. It felt so good to hear that.

"Sort of. Get in the car."

He stuck his hands in his pockets as he looked from her car then back at her. Finally, he shook his head. "We both have cars. I'll meet you at my place," he could tell by the look on her face that that wasn't good enough. "We're taking my car."

"What's wrong with mine?" she asked even though that didn't exactly call for an answer. He had the nice sports car that honestly, she wished she had. She drove it once and it was way too awesome for her to admit to. But sitting in it? That would be cool too. "Fine."

They walked together to her car and got in. It was quiet only for a couple seconds before Rick glanced over at her as he pulled out of his spot. "What is this about?"

"I just wanted to talk before we were in casa de Castle," she smiled when he let out a soft chuckle at her comment. "We haven't been talking today and I really don't like that. If you ever told anyone that I said that, I'd deny it though," she teased as she looked out at the road ahead.

The idea of Kate really wanting to talk about a personal matter wasn't something that came up often. They were both aware, which kept Rick quiet for a minute as he tried to think of what to say next. Finally with a sigh, he looked at her fast before looking back ahead. "I'm sorry. I just really didn't know what to say. How do you respond to finding out your mother told a hot woman that you have a crush on them?"

If they weren't trying to talk things through, she'd be picking a few bones for the way he worded that. "For all you know, I could have been kidding."

He shook his head. "You weren't."

"Well maybe that's just her way to get me to come," she reasoned. "She wants you to be with someone and I guess it makes sense to her because we're always together. You really don't see many other people, do you?"

"No, I don't," he said softly. "Not that I really want to be around too many other people anyway. I get to see my favorite people every day. That's enough for me."

"Your favorite people?"

"Yeah, Alexis and my mother," he paused for a moment. "And you. Please don't read into that and hit me."

She shook her head with a laugh. "I'm not going to hit you. You're getting off lucky tonight. I'm going to be nice, I promise."

"Do you really?"

"Well I could always try."

"You had to throw the 'try' in there real fast. That way you're not subject to your pants being on fire if you're bad."

The detective couldn't help but laugh at his 'liar, liar' reference. "So are we good? Because I just learned today that I really don't like when it's just business between us. We make an amazing team, but I care about you as more than a coworker."

"Yeah, we're good," he parked and looked over at her. They exchanged smiles before getting out of the car and going up for family time. Plus one.

Walking through the door, Rick excused himself to his room to change. Kate smiled as Alexis came over to hug her and brought her over to the couch.

"You haven't been here in so long. What's up with that?" Alexis asked with a smile as they sat down. The two of them were fairly close. Kate has given her advice in the past and being able to connect with a teenager was always a big deal for an adult.

"Working and a whole lot of nothing," she responded with a laugh. "I've been around a few times and you weren't here, probably living it up with the boyfriend or something," by the way Alexis blushed, Kate nodded her head. "There's the confirmation I was looking for."

She shrugged her shoulders. "Well maybe if you told me when you were going to be around, I'd be here."

"Good point. I'll keep that in mind."

"So how are things with you and dad?" Alexis asked with a bit of a hopeful smile. That was a bit much for Kate because all day she's been trying to tell herself that Martha was just trying to play match maker.

"What do you mean by that?" she asked just in case she was psyching herself out.

"Come on," the redhead rolled her eyes with a laugh. "Do you like him?"

That wasn't fair. Kate was expecting if anything, for Alexis to throw Rick under the bus. Even though she didn't want that, it was better than herself being put on the spot. "I spend my entire day with him. He's a great friend."

"You know what I mean."

Kate tried to think of a way to answer that, but before she could, Alexis stood up.

"I have to call that boyfriend of mine," she smirked. "I'll be back in a few," she said before walking away.

Kate sat alone for a minute before getting up and walking into Rick's room. More like inviting herself in. He looked shocked, obviously just finished up changing just as she came in. "Castle-"

"Beckett.. in my room."

"Alexis just asked me if I like you."

He closed his door, a smirk pulling from his lips. "Did she really? What did you say?"

"Nothing."

"And now you're in my room freaking out. Sounds like you do like me."

She rolled her eyes. "Can you not do this right now?"

"Why not? I was put on the spot today, so now it's your turn." 

She walked over to the bed and sat on it with a sigh. "Actually you weren't put on the spot like what you're doing to me."

"But I guess you do like me, or else you would have said no right away," he pointed out as he sat next to her.

"Castle, can we talk about something else?"

"Kate."

"Please."

Rick ran a hand through his hair and looked over at Kate. "I wish you would really talk sometimes. I love to talk and I don't like secrets. We're close so you should be able to tell me these things. Or maybe you just don't want to be the first to say it."

This was way out of her comfort zone. Play dumb? Yeah. "What do you mean."

"You're not ready to tell the truth? What's the worst that could happen?"

"Speaking of the truth, is there something you should be telling me?" she asked as she looked over at him.

He was quiet for a minute, obviously not wanting to say what he had to but after everything he's said about hating secrets, he couldn't turn back. "I like you."

Well that was blunt.

"Dinner's ready!" Martha called out.

"Oh, time to eat, let's go." Rick got up and went for the door in a hot second.

The detective's jaw dropped before she could even think to control herself. "Castle wait," he couldn't just say that then walk out of the room. But he did. "Castle."

"I smell chicken. I love chicken."

"Richard Castle," she said sternly.

A few seconds later, he was walking back through the door. The full name had to scare some sense into him.

"Before you said I was one of your favorite people," obviously now she understood why, but she wasn't ready to get that far just yet. "You're one of my favorite people too," she smiled innocently.

Rick smiled back as he reached out for her hand. She didn't reject him and walked out of his room without another word.


	4. Chapter 4

Kate sat at the counter next to Rick and stared at her plate as she ate. She didn't mean for it to be awkward, but that was kind of difficult when he just told her minutes before that he liked her and was expecting her to speak her mind as well. It didn't work like that with her though. Things had to be right for her to open up. Being pushed only forced her the other way. Rick knew this so he only pushed so far before accepting what she would offer. Now the both of them sat with their faces practically touching their plates to ignore the looks and judgment that filled the air.

"Kate wins," Alexis said very quietly. It was so quiet though, that it caught everyone's attention. All eyes were on her. "You and dad are having some sort of contest or something? That plate's practically an attachment to your body."

At the same time, Kate and Rick sat up straight, guilt claiming residency on both of their expressions.

Trying to think of something to explain her odd behavior, Kate paused. "I like chicken," disappointed that a detective couldn't come up with anything better; she decided to simply stick with it. "A lot."

"Me too," Rick smirked as he looked over at Kate. She was worked up over something personal which wasn't often the case, so he was amazed by it, mostly because it had to do with him.

"Oh well that's nice," Martha smiled. "You two have a lot in common, don't you?"

Leave it to Martha to make an awkward situation just a little bit worse. She was definitely all for them going out, but by insinuating that a shared love for chicken was the deal breaker? The effort wasn't necessary, but admirable.

No one knew how to respond, so everyone just looked down at their plates.

"Dinner was really good. Thanks for inviting me," Kate finally said and everyone looked over at her. They exchanged smiles. The next person to make an attempt to say anything was Rick.

"Yeah, you picked a good day. She likes chicken."

She nodded her head. "A lot."

"Okay, I think I'm going to head up to bed," Martha said as she stood up and brought her dish to the sink. "You two are acting very odd and it's giving me a headache."

Kate got up and collected all of the dirty dishes. She brought them over to the sink and laughed softly. "I'm giving myself a headache, don't worry. It's not just you." The two looked at one another for a moment. She could tell by the look in Martha's eyes that she was trying to suggest something. Just to make it clear, Martha looked from Rick, then back to Kate.

"Good night," she finally said before offering a warm smile and leaving the room.

"I need to do homework," Alexis got up and hugged Rick. "Good night. Will I be seeing you soon, Kate?" she asked as she walked over to her and gave her a friendly hug.

The brunette smiled as she returned the hug. She wasn't normally a touchy feely person, but she did love this family even though it wasn't her own. Hell, she didn't exactly have a family of her own. "I always come back. If you ever need me, you have my number."

"Thank you," Rick's daughter said before walking out.

Kate and Rick's eyes met. Neither broke away.

"Come here," Rick spoke softly as he got up from his chair and headed over to the couch.

She was tired, but she wasn't exactly in a rush to go home. She was alone there and her and Rick did have a few things to work out. She didn't know what exactly needed fixing, but some things definitely did. Oh and there was that last detail that her car wasn't exactly close by. She came here with Rick and he was well aware. He'd keep her there for as long as he could. They both knew that and though it would without a doubt shock them both, she wasn't going to fight it.

She followed him to the living room and sat on the couch. On her way down, he gently took hold of her arm and guided her to sit close to him.

"I'm sorry about everything today. I know they made you feel awkward and I probably did too," he said with a sigh. "I didn't mean to do any of that. I normally would know better since you could kick my ass," he smirked.

A chuckle escaped her lips as she nodded her head. "Yeah you're right about that," she leaned her head back and yawned. "Don't worry about it. I think today was just as bad on you."

Seeing how tired she was, he scooped her in his arms and stood up. Before she could ask any questions, he answered. "You're tired and I kind of am too. I don't want to drop you off to your car. I don't want you to get in an accident and no, this isn't me making a move on you."

This normally wouldn't fly, but her being tired and after everything that went on today, she figured she could let Rick carry her. She wouldn't let him make it a habit, but it was okay for now.

"If this isn't what you want, I'll take you home. I can pick you up in the morning to get your car."

She shook her head. "It's okay," she whispered tiredly as she let him carry her up the stairs and to his room. Normally people weren't this nice to her. In past relationships, she never received treatment like this, so she was holding onto the moment and appreciating it as best as her tired mind allowed her to.

He smiled. "Good," he whispered as he walked into his room and carefully closed the door as he held Kate. He didn't want Martha or Alexis to see and assume the wrong thing. He brought her to the bed and placed her down gently, lifting the blankets over her. After he did so, he smiled. "Good night Kate."

Hearing him call her by her first name brought an evident smile to her face, her eyes closed. Her eyes were closed, but she could feel him pulling off her shoes. Once they were both off, he looked down at her appreciatively. She opened her eyes in time to catch this and with that; he stepped away from the bed. Before he could get to far, she reached out without even thinking and grabbed his hand. "Where are you going?"

He didn't pull away from her and she could tell he didn't want to. "I'm going to sleep on the couch. You stay here."

She shook her head and tugged gently on his hand. "I can share the bed."

He raised a brow. "Are you sure?"

"Mhmm," she mumbled and let go of his hand to lift the blankets. He kicked off his shoes and climbed in carefully as though this was some sort of a trick. But it wasn't. "Good night Rick."

"Wow, first name?" he smirked as they faced each other.

She returned the smirk and nodded. "I think we're on a first name basis right now."

He could tell she was tired, so he decided to let this go even though if it were up to him, he'd force himself awake to talk to her all night. There were so many things he wanted to ask. "Good night."

Despite being in someone else's bed, she was able to relax herself. There was never a real reason to be so tense around Rick of all people. Suddenly everything from earlier seemed so pointless. All the tension that wasn't at all necessary. And even though she'd probably wake up and once again have some sort of Beckett freak out, for now she was enjoying the warmth of Rick's bed and his sweet scent as she laid close to him and allowed sleep to swallow over her.


	5. Chapter 5

Sleep came with a scarce consistency for Katherine Beckett. Well, all nights apart from the most recent. Pulling herself out of a rather deep sleep, her eyes fluttered open and slowly took in the surroundings. It took her a few seconds to realize she wasn't at her apartment, but she quickly remembered that was her choice. She was still at Rick's loft. Better yet, she was in his bedroom, lying in his bed. He was just a couple inches away from her, still asleep. Instead of freaking out, she just smiled to herself as she watched him sleep. Seeing him quiet and so at ease was intriguing. Usually his mouth was going a million words per minute. It was rather peaceful, enjoyable even.

There was no sunlight sleeping between the cracks of the closed curtains. Grabbing her phone from her pocket, the screen lit up the entire room as it read the time. It was only four thirty in the morning. She groaned softly, and put her phone face down on the bed and laid on her back, looking up at the ceiling.

"Kate…" Rick whispered so softly, she was surprised she heard it over the thoughts that flooded through her mind, tormenting her silently.

"Yeah?" she whispered as she looked over at him. His eyes were still closed and as she realized he was sleeping, she turned to her side to face him. She reached out and gently stroked his hair, not really knowing what possessed her to do it. Her touch was so delicate so it surprised her when his eyes opened and focused on her. "You felt that?" she asked, keeping her voice low. There was no shot of her pulling away and denying it later. That wouldn't work with Rick, so she decided to own up to it. All the while, her hand rested on the back of his head.

He nodded his head subtly, aware of her hand touching him and he didn't want her to pull away. He wasn't used to these signs of affection from Kate.

"Did I wake you?" she asked. "I'm sorry."

"No I'm happy I'm up."

It was obvious why, so she decided against questioning it to hear what she already knew. This wasn't a side of her that she usually showed to Rick, or anyone for that matter. It wasn't like she was cold hearted. She was far from it, but opening up to people was a quality in which she lacked experience. Every now and then, she'd talk to Rick on a personal level, so lying in his bed with him wasn't exactly a tragedy. "You do realize it's four thirty?" she asked, a small smirk pulling from her lips.

"I know now," he smiled. "But better than that, its four thirty and you're still here."

"I am," she agreed with the inevitable.

"But I'm just wondering why," he admitted. "I mean I know why you stayed last night, but everything after that doesn't make sense to me. You asked me to stay here with you."

"It's your bed."

"You don't care," he laughed softly. "You asked me to stay," he repeated. "When you woke up, you didn't run out and catch the first cab you could."

"I don't like cabs."

He knew she would try to come up with an excuse for everything if he really didn't go at her. All he wanted at this very moment was answers. He'd have to really go at her. "You stayed in this bed with me and you were watching me sleep, weren't you?

She shrugged her shoulders. "Maybe I just like it when you're quiet," she meant to say it in a way that would shut him up, which failed. She smirked softly.

"Oh and you're sort of touching me right now."

Remembering her hand was holding his head, she started to pull away. Before she could, he reached up and put his hand over hers. "Please don't," he whispered, almost begging her.

Her expression softened and she nodded her head. "Okay."

He was really taking his chances here, but he reached out and rested his hands on Kate's hips, pulling her in a little closer. She let him pull her in as she looked him carefully in the eyes. He stared back as he moved her. She wasn't going to stop him.

"Rick?"

"We're still on a first name basis?" he teased for the sake of making Kate more comfortable.

It worked. She relaxed in his arms. "I think we can handle first names."

"Could you handle a little more than that?" he kissed the top of her head before leaning his forehead against hers.

"What was that for?" she didn't pull away. This was quickly becoming a habit she didn't want to break.

"You know why," he knew he'd have to say it again because he was playing the same game with Kate before. It was his turn to be questioned. That's how they worked. "I like you," he whispered so quietly, as though that would erase his words.

"You said my name before when you were sleeping."

He shrugged. "I like you."

Letting all of her walls down and forcing her worries out of her mind, she leaned in closer and closer again until her lips were brushing Rick's. She paused for a few seconds, then closed her eyes and kissed him gently. She could feel Rick's grip of her tighten, but not enough to hurt her. He kissed her back which didn't surprise her. What surprised her was how careful he was with her. He didn't break away, but he didn't try to deepen it or push her anymore now that he got here where he wanted.

Even though most of her didn't want, she gave in to that small part of her that was telling her to stop kissing him. That was also the part of her that reminded her that she needed air. The both of them took a minute before even thinking about speaking.

"What was that for?" Rick asked, deciding to borrow Kate's question.

The words spilled from her lips without much thought. "I like you."

There was no turning back.

Rick couldn't hide his reaction. A huge smile was plastered on his face as he ran a hand through Kate's hair. "You do?"

She nodded.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

"Can we later?"

"Okay," he agreed. "You just told me the one thing I've been dying to hear. I can wait a little bit to talk."

"Thank you."

"Do you regret it?" he didn't want to ask questions just yet, but it came out. "Or we can talk about it later."

She shook her head with a smile. "I don't regret it," she promised. "I've been wanting to do that for a while."

"Really?"

"You said we could talk later," she laughed.

He laughed softly, nodding his head. "I did say that. I'll keep my word."

She didn't know what to do now. She confronted him with something she used to always tell herself she'd get over. This morning just proved that Rick wasn't one of those people you just over though. And now she had no idea what they were. She leaned her head on his chest and smiled as she felt his hand rubbing her back. Just enjoy the moment.

The door opened, the room illuminated a bright yellow, borrowing the light from the hall. After taking a couple steps, a gasp could be heard.

"Well I came in here looking for your credit card," Martha said in an even voice. "I thought you'd be sleeping, Rick. Is that Kate?"

The detective lifted her head and looked back, smiling an extremely guilty smile. "Hey Martha."

"I told you Rick liked you."

Like this was seriously the time.

"Thanks mom," he said between clenched teeth. Kate looked at him to find his cheeks turning red.

Martha caught on.

"So about that credit card-"

"No."

She turned around and walked out the door, closing it behind her. Once again, Rick and Kate were left in the dark.

"I'm so sorry," Rick whispered. She could tell he was terrified of what she would do. "You didn't want her to know, did you?"

"Not like that, no," she sighed. "It's not your fault."

"You're not going to leave, are you?"

She smiled and settled back in his arms. "I like you."


	6. Chapter 6

Head on Rick's chest, Kate let out a sigh, her gaze focused on the light starting to shine in through the window. The soft beam of light shone down on her and warmed her skin every so slightly. She felt Rick's arms tighten around her and realized he was still awake.

"You're still up?" he asked. When she looked up at him, they exchanged smiles. "I thought you went back to sleep."

"I thought you did too," she admitted as she laid there with him. "But no, I've been up the whole time. Just thinking."

He nodded his head, accepting that as a reason for the given silence that they were finally bold enough to break. "Me too," he sighed. "What were you thinking about?" she could see by the look on his face, he was hoping she was thinking about him.

"Obviously you," she confirmed.

"Obviously?"

She moved her head from his chest and rested it on a pillow, her body turned to face Rick. He did the same. "Well yeah. I am in your bed right now, aren't I?"

"If it was a dream, that would just be cruel," he responded with a lighthearted smile. Little things like that always landed her right back into her comfort zone. It was hard to believe there was a time where she didn't like him as a person.

She let out a quick chuckle. "Yeah it would be pretty cruel, wouldn't it?" she didn't know what else to say. She was only just getting used to this opening up thing and it would take some work. "What were you thinking about?"

"You, of course," they both knew it wasn't necessary to ask such a general question. He took it upon himself to elaborate. "Specifically, I was just thinking about how happy I am since you didn't run out earlier when my mom walked in."

"What difference would it make anyway? She already saw us."

"Yes but the fact that you stayed rather than running away just got me thinking, and I know you said you like me, but is it enough for anything to actually happen between us?"

"I'm guessing you waited as long as you could," she smirked. Earlier they agreed that they'd talk about it later. Apparently they saw two hours much differently. "I stayed, didn't I? I feel like that should answer your question."

"Kate," after he called her by her first name, he stopped to make sure that was alright. He really felt like he was walking on eggshells around her.

"Don't give me that look every time you say my name," she laughed. "We're not working, so you could call me whatever you want."

"Bambi?"

"Kate. You can call me Kate."

"It was worth a shot," they both cracked a smirk. "I like Kate better anyway."

"Thanks," her hand found his and locked fingers. "I want to be here and I hate that you're questioning it. You know I wouldn't do something I wouldn't want to do. You've been around me more than enough to know that. With your mouth always going, I thought you always knew what you wanted."

"I do."

"Then act like it. If I'm going to be with you, you're going to need to take charge every now and then, okay?" she studied him carefully, making sure he understood what she was saying.

"So you're saying you want to be with me?" he raised a brow, his voice so serious, she couldn't recall a time where he sounded like this, even considering all of their life threatening experiences. And it was only typical that he'd grasp onto that one detail.

She rolled her eyes before looking back at him. "That's exactly what I'm saying. Are you okay with that?"

"That has to be the dumbest question I've ever heard in my life," he teased, rubbing her hand with his thumb. He leaned in and kissed her lips gently. When she didn't break from it, he let go of her hand and wrapped his arms around her waist, pulling her in closer. Whatever twisted plan Martha had the day before, it worked.

Kate smiled against his lips as she wrapped her around his neck. At first the kiss was very slow and even though she was enjoying it, she could tell Rick was holding back. He didn't want to push her and even though she thought it was sweet, she was found herself breaking from the kiss. "Wear the pants, Rick," she whispered against his lips.

He was hesitant for a moment, but then leaned back in to kiss her. This time he was giving into his needs. He rolled Kate onto her back and carefully got on top of her. She let out a soft gasp as she felt his body pressed against hers. She slipped her tongue into his mouth and felt as he used his to play with hers in a teasing and yet, very alluring manner. At the same time she reached for his shirt, he reached for hers.

They broke from the kiss for a moment, smiling as they looked one in the eyes. As quickly as the kiss ended, their lips found one another again. The sudden need for one another was quickly taking over. She took the chance to unbutton his shirt and help him out of it. Their breathing started to get heavy and once again, their lips parted and Kate started to trail kisses down Rick's neck. He grunted softly and she could feel him harden against her. She glanced down at the bulge before looking back up at him, a seductive smile playing her lips. Just as he went to take off her shirt, her phone rang.

They let out a disappointed sigh in unison as Kate grabbed her phone and answered it. "Beckett," she listened as Rick started to suck on a patch of skin on her neck. She had to bite her lip to keep herself from making any inappropriate noises. "Alright, I'll be there soon. I'll pass it on to Castle."

Once she hung up, he looked up at her. "Seeing how I'm Castle again, we have to work?"

She shrugged. "Actually I have to work. I have no idea what you plan on doing," she teased.

"Being inspired by you," he smiled. "So I can write my next best seller, based off of you. And everyone will love it and wish even more than already that they could have you."

"That's weird," she smirked, kissing him softly before sitting up. "We need to go, get up. Oh and I need to take a shower."

He wasn't happy to be getting up since they were very close to scratching an itch they've both had for so long. She couldn't even pin it on him being a guy because she was disappointed as well. When he pointed in the direction of the bathroom she already knew of, she smiled. "Towels are in there."

"Okay," she ran a hand through Rick's hair and messed with it playfully, smirking as she looked down at his hardness. "Looks like you're going to need a cold shower. Too bad mine are hot, or else I'd ask you to join me," she could hear him groan as she walked into the bathroom.

She was fast since they both had to shower and get to the precinct. Also, she wanted to be able to look decent. She used his shampoo and body wash without any complaints. It was different from her usual cherry, but it made her feel closer to Rick, though thinking it alone embarrassed her. She was sure he'd love to know this.

Turning off the water, she towel dried her hair before wrapping it around her slim frame. She walked out of the bathroom and smiled as she saw Rick sitting on his bed. When he looked at her, a whimper escaped his lips and she couldn't help but love it. She was naked underneath an article that was so easy to remove and the both of them knew it wasn't happening. It tortured him, yet she somehow thought it was adorable.

"So about that cold shower," she said and in a flash, he was up and in the bathroom. That was when she realized she didn't have any clothes. She could wear the same thing as yesterday but that would be a little more obvious to her friends at the precinct than the identical scent she and Rick would be walking in with. She hoped they'd be too busy to notice.

With a sigh, Kate walked out of Rick's room and down the hall to Alexis's room. She knew by now, the old soul knew Kate stayed. She was a pretty smart girl and more importantly, Martha couldn't keep her mouth shut. She knocked on the door and smiled awkwardly when Alexis opened the door and observed her wet, toweled body.

"Did you and my dad-"

"No we didn't," Kate cut her off fast.

"I'm guessing you need clothes?" she asked before pushing the door open for Kate to come in. The two had a very good relationship and right at that moment, Kate was silently thanking every star in the sky for bringing her that luck. "No one will ever know at your job. If they do, forget what I said," she said as she started to search her closet.

"Thank you so much. I owe you."

Alexis looked over her shoulder and smiled. "You don't owe me anything, although I'd love to know what you and my dad were doing," she grabbed a pair of faded black jeans. "So if you two didn't do it, were you going to?" she then found a black tank top and a deep blue zip up hoodie.

Kate smirked softly. "Do you really want to know about your father's sex life?" she asked, raising a brow.

The old soul turned into a teenager for just a moment and cringed at the thought. "Never mind. Are you two together?" hope glistened in her eyes. Seeing this brought a lot of relief to Kate. Alexis's opinion on this weighed very heavily for both herself and Rick. She figured Rick already knew how Alexis would react, or else they wouldn't be together.

She accepted the clothes gratefully. "I think you should ask your dad," she couldn't say no, but she wondered if Rick wanted to be the one to tell Alexis the news.

It didn't matter because her answer acted as confirmation for Alexis. "You are!" She pulled Kate in a hug and the detective held her towel in place with one hand and wrapped her other arm around Alexis, laughing. "I knew it would happen one day. Dad never believed me."

She smiled softly as they broke from the hug. "Thanks for the clothes. You saved me," before she could turn around to leave, Alexis grabbed a small bag, a hair dryer, and a brush.

"Make up and everything else you might need."

"You're my favorite person ever," Kate smiled.

"I'll take second," Alexis smiled in return. "I hope my dad is your number one."

Kate walked out and jumped a little when she saw Rick standing a couple feet away, fully dressed and a smile plastered on her face. She closed the door behind her. "How were you so fast?"

"I'm a guy," he laughed. "I love the way you are with my daughter."

"I'm in a relationship with you and by default, that means I'm also in one with Alexis and your mother," she smiled. "I don't mind that at all either, so don't you worry. I'm going to get ready. I won't be all lightning speed like you, but I'll be pretty fast."

He kissed her forehead with a laugh. "Okay. I'll be downstairs waiting for you."

She looked up at him and kissed his lips. "You better, because you're my boyfriend," she said it simply to see the smile that illuminated his face in an instant. She kissed him again before going in Rick's room to get ready. She heard him walking down the stairs as she got ready. She smiled to herself, loving that she had the privilege of both falling asleep and waking up next to him. She could already feel that this relationship was different from anything she's gotten herself into in the past.


	7. Chapter 7

Standing in the elevator, Kate could feel eyes on her. A smirk pulled from her lips since the only other person on there with her was Rick. She looked up at him and unlike all the other times in the past, he didn't quickly look away as though that would erase what she saw. As cute as it was, the silence made the situation just a little bit awkward.

"What?" she finally asked as she leaned her back against the wall.

He shrugged his shoulders and smiled. "I just like watching you is all," he paused. "Is that weird?"

If anyone else had asked, or even Rick before this very day, she would have offered a mouthful, but she shook her head. "No, it's not."

"Yeah it is," he laughed. "You're just trying to be nice."

"I might be," she agreed. "Or maybe I just don't mind."

"Oh yeah I forgot. You're my girlfriend now," a smile found its way on his face at the statement. She could already tell he was going to say that every chance he could and at the moment, it was adorable. She didn't have to say it out loud because he could tell. "I'm your boyfriend," he added.

She nodded her head. "Well that's usually how it works," she smirked. Almost at the end of their elevator ride, she realized their time as a couple was almost up for a couple hours. They were about to go from Kate and Rick to Beckett and Castle. She loved working with him, but she wanted a little more time with her new boyfriend. "Come here," she whispered softly.

Raising a brow, he obeyed and stepped closer to her, slowly. She reached out for him and pulled him in closer, her lips crashing against his. She held his hips between her hands and smiled into the kiss as she heard a whimper escape his lips. She felt a finger trace her jaw line. His touch was gentle, but the kiss was a little rougher and neither of them wanted it to stop. It was like they were picking up from where they left off earlier and she wanted to so badly. Right as she started to run a hand down his chest, she heard the elevator sound. That annoying ring that told you you've reached your destination.

Matching groans could be heard from the two as their lips parted and they quickly pulled away from one another. Rick took a deep breath as Kate ran a hand through her hair. She looked at him and without a word; he knew she was silently asking if she looked okay.

"You look beautiful," he told her softly as the door opened.

She almost reached out for his hand, and then quickly remembered he was now Castle. She was Beckett.

"Good morning," she offered a smile as she and Castle walked over to Esposito and Ryan. The two were in their own little corner, laughing about something. It was amazing how the two of them were always joking around and somehow got their work done. She and Rick spent a lot of their time picking on one another like children and flirted like that solved the murders, so she had no room to talk.

"Hey, you two look pretty happy," Esposito looked from one to the other.

Ryan nodded his head as the two of them crossed their arms simultaneously. "So what did you two do last night?"

Kate shrugged her shoulders, trying to act as normal as possible. "What do you mean?"

"I mean what did you do when you left?" he asked slowly, almost like she was stupid. He flashed an apologetic look when he saw Kate's expression. Never mess with that woman.

Kate leaned against a desk as she crossed her arms against her chest. Rick sat on the desk just a couple inches from her. "I was tired. I went to sleep really early." That wasn't a lie. It was only missing a few important details.

"Where?" Esposito asked as he pulled out his phone. She didn't hear it, so she assumed it was on vibrate. Either that or he just wasn't that interested. No. That was impossible. Esposito and Ryan teased Kate full time. They were like the brothers she never had and didn't want half the time. She did love them though.

Before she could answer, Ryan cut in. "And please don't say your apartment. You sort of left your car here."

Kate opened her mouth to speak, but before she could, Rick was talking. "We went for coffee after we got out and I just thought it would be easier to drive her home since we were right by her apartment. I guess she's ashamed of being around me."

Even though she knew he was only joking, those last words made her feel terrible. She knew he wanted everyone to know that they were together and she did too, but she wasn't sure if she was ready. That wasn't fair. She knew she wanted to be with him and she didn't want him to second guess it. But damn it, those words just really killed her.

"Actually we went back to his place. Martha wanted me to, so I went and then I fell asleep there. Grow up children," she smirked. The brunette looked over at Rick and couldn't help but match the smile he was flashing over at her. Today was one of those days where she couldn't just look at him as Castle. They often had their moments, but now they were together and that smile warmed her heart. It was so unlike her to feel like this so she felt like this really was meant to happen. They really were supposed to be together. She didn't want to lose him and one thing she knew was how to end a relationship. She always ended up doing for herself and no one ever seemed good enough for her, but she wanted to make Rick happy. He made her think beyond herself.

"Okay love birds," Ryan said after a long silence. Kate and Rick broke eye contact and looked back over at Kate's surrogate brothers. "So what are you two together or something? Finally?"

It wasn't a secret that the two had chemistry, and Kate always knew that the precinct had the skills to catch on. Their timing to press the issue was extremely appropriate. She couldn't lie to these people because they were the closest thing she had to family. She couldn't lie because Rick down because she learned what it was like to end and begin a day with him. She didn't want things to go back to the way they were before falling asleep with him in his bed.

"Yes we are together," she said in such a business like manner, she could see the shock on their faces. As she quickly glanced over, she could see the same expression on Rick's face. "Let's all be adults about it because I'm really happy."

She didn't know what to expect. Times like these she wondered why she had her little outbursts. Awkwardness filled the air and she looked down at the floor. When she felt an arm wrap around her, she looked over at Rick and smiled.

"We'll make fun of you two in a couple days. Just get passed the honeymoon period first, okay?" Ryan smiled.

"Oh and good luck telling the captain," a devilish smirk pulled from Esposito's lips.

Rick laughed. "Oh great, we get to tell the boss man."

And the funny thing was, he wasn't even being sarcastic. This relationship was going to be interesting.

"Be safe kids," Esposito said before he and Ryan walked off to give Kate and Richard a moment.

Kate looked up at Rick and placed a quick kiss on his lips. "Ready to tell the boss man?" she mocked teasingly.

He nodded his head. "Yeah just a minute," he kissed her again and reached for her hand. "I can't believe you did that. That's so not you. It was kind of sexy."

"Really?"

"Well sort of frantic, but I'm twisted, so sexy too."

She laughed softly as she squeezed his hand. "Yeah?"

"Thank you," he said softly.

She smiled. "Anything for you."

"Oh then in that case, would you mind spending the night again?" he asked as he reached out with his free hand, pushing her hair behind her ear with a hopeful smile.

She almost wanted to ask him if he wanted to stay at her apartment, but she figured they could do a couple days at his place first since Alexis was used to seeing her father. It's not like she had an emotional attachment to her apartment anyway. "I can do that."

"But do you want to?" he asked even though the answer was obvious. She hated when he did this. He was the only person who'd ever interrogate her. She was usually the one who asked all of the questions.

The detective nodded her head. "Of course I want to stay with you. You're sort of my boyfriend and I want to have some time with him after I spend the day working with that Castle guy. Pretty cute."

The writer stood up and let go of Kate's hand. He placed it on the small of her back as they started to walk down the hall. "Yeah after working a long day with Beckett, I'd love to hold my girl Kate for a while."

This side of him was something she'd never thought would be reserved to her and she was so happy to find that she was wrong. "She might want a little more than to just be held after a long stressful day," she winked playfully. "I think I might need a little something to loosen me up."

This had his attention. By the look on his face, she could tell he was wishing it was time to go. She was too. "I can take care of that."

She nodded her head as they came to the boss man's door. "I figured you were the go to guy."

"Oh I'm your only guy," he announced confidently.

"This is true," she knocked on the door and when her boss called them, they both took a deep breath and walked in. Today was a day of truth and Rick gave her the confidence to do the things she never thought she could. She wanted everyone to know.


	8. Chapter 8

Kate pushed open the door to her apartment and closed it after Rick stepped in behind her. She took his hand and led him back to her bedroom. Once she let go of his hand, Rick laid on her bed as she started go through her closet. It was sunset and the soft pink light of the old day bled through the window. It was enough so that she didn't need to turn on any light and honestly, she didn't want. She was a sucker for romantic lighting like this.

She pulled out two outfits and turned to face Rick. "Which one should I take?" she watched as Rick lifted his head from the pillow. He looked from one outfit to the next and then looked her body up and down. "Richard Castle, just point to one."

"Both," that was a typical guy answer to get out of making a fashion choice. But then he decided to elaborate. "In fact, I think you should bring a couple more things with you. That way you can stay a couple nights."

"You're pushing your luck," she teased as she threw both of the outfits in a bag.

"Yet you're not arguing. You know you want to stay with me."

Kate threw a couple of her belongings in the bag before sitting next to Rick. She smiled down at him and ran a hand through his hair. "Of course I do," she felt herself clinging to him a lot faster than she'd expected, but it didn't scare her. They've known each other long enough for her to be able to trust him. Most of her waking hours were spent with him anyway. The feelings they were acting on were always there.

He pouted a little and looked at her lips, his silent way of asking her to kiss him. When she did, he wrapped his arms around her and smiled. He pulled her on top of him and she could see the thrill it gave him to not have her reject him. He wouldn't have to worry about that anymore.

"How long am I supposed to be staying?" she asked between kisses.

"However long you want," he answered. "I'd never let you leave if it were up to me."

She broke from the kiss to read his expression and found that he meant it. She's been doing this so much the last twenty four hours, she almost felt but, but she wasn't used to this. She's had good men in her life, but never like this. No one ever got Kate thinking the way Rick did. No one ever made her laugh the way he did, or better yet, make her want to have fun. There were so many things about him that she loved and on top of that he made her a better person. All the while, she trusted him. Things couldn't get anymore perfect for her at the moment.

"I don't want to be the decision maker on this one," she said as she looked down at him. "You own the place and your family lives there with you. I don't want Martha or Alexis hating me for being around too much."

He smiled softly and placed a kiss on her lips. "That's not going to happen. They love you and love having you around," he reached up and ran a hand through Kate's hair. "They've wanted us together for a long time, especially Alexis."

Things like this made her want to say she'd leave her apartment with him and never look back, but she needed to remind herself of who she was. She had all the faith in the world that they were going to work out, but she didn't want to make any wrong moves. He was just so cute though and he made her want to give him everything.

"I'll stay until I run out of clothes," she finally answered. "And no, I wasn't counting how much I packed. I just did what you told me to."

That was enough of an answer for Rick, seeing the satisfied look on his face. He knew he was getting more out of her than anyone else could. "Okay, you don't get to change today though. You're wearing Alexis's clothes so that gives us one more day."

"I couldn't agree with you more."

"Naturally, I'm sort of a genius."

She laughed softly. "Okay, keep telling yourself that," she rolled off of him and rested on her side to face him. Kate kissed his neck and smiled as he faced her. She looked over him appreciatively, wondering how she's gone all of this time without making a move. She gave into him so many ways in the past, but that was all friendly and harmless flirting. It always teased the both of them, leaving them wanting more.

"Do you think I'm your one and done?" Rick's curiosity cut the silence like butter.

She raised a brow as he brought up an all too familiar phrase of hers. "Excuse me, what?"

"Your one and done," he repeated. "I remember when we were working on one of our first cases together we were talking about marriage. You said you wanted your one and done. You only wanted to do it once. So I'm just wondering if you think that could be me."

Before she could stop herself, she was smiling like an idiot. That was literally one of their first conversations together and he remembered it. She didn't want to act too impressed because as a writer, he was always good with details, but knowing she was heard meant than words could convey.

When he realized she wasn't going to say anything or rather, couldn't speak, he smiled. "I remember everything you've ever told me. Not because you inspired my greatest character yet, but because you're just the greatest person I've ever had the pleasure of meeting."

She found his hand as she held his gaze. "Let me ask you something," she climbed out of the bed and pulled Rick with her. She led him into the kitchen and let go of his hand to find a bottle of wine and two glasses. She spoke to him as she poured some for the both of them. "I know you've been married twice and I'm not holding that against you in any way. I'm just wondering if you ever want to get into that again," Rick was leaning against the counter a couple feet away from her. She handed them a glass before taking a spot next to him.

He took a long sip of his wine and once he pulled the glass from his lips, he looked at her to find her looking back. "I believe we have different cases going for us," he began. "You see while you've been smart and had your one and done idea, I got married twice before and I walked into both of those marriages knowing they weren't right. Gina and I thought we were never going to find anyone and though I loved her, it was really just as friends. I spent a lot of time with her and she does have a way of manipulating people. Meredith was always insane, but I wanted to make it work because Alexis was on the way. I wanted Alexis to have her mother and father."

"That's not a bad way to think," Kate reasoned. "The whole Gina thing bothers me more than Meredith because you tried going out with her again."

"I told you we're those people who don't want to die alone. I was trying to get over you," he sighed. "Is it sad that I didn't even have you, but I was still trying to find ways to get over you?"

She shrugged her shoulders and shook her head. "No it's not crazy. I can't say I've never done anything crazy to try to get over you. When you started going out with Gina though, I tried to be civil,"

"But?"

"But I wanted to kill her and make it look like an accident," she smirked and sipped her wine. "Why did you marry Meredith?" she understood why he tried to hold onto her, and she even understood his second marriage. This was something she wasn't too sure of.

"I was young and a little too naïve for my own good. I didn't have the mentality to think of the long-term effects. Maybe that was part of my problem when I got sucked into marrying Gina. I guess I thought marriage was the solution to fix a relationship that was falling apart. I don't know how to explain it really, other than just telling you I was stupid."

She shook her head. "Don't worry, I heard enough," she confirmed. He looked worried and she realized he took that the wrong way. She slipped an arm around his waist and kissed his cheek. "I think I could be the one that changes your streak of bad luck."

He smiled. "You helped me grow up Kate. I'd never make that mistake again. You're the only person I want to be with and I can promise you I've never felt like this again. Three's a charm."

She laughed. "That's your case, at least."

"Doesn't work for everyone, but I know that's my case."

"Mine is one and done," she smiled. "You're my one," she knew it before this conversation, but she also wanted to get those few things out of him. Now that they both had this out in the open, she couldn't help but feel like she was closer to him. Closer than she's ever been to anyone else, and closer than she could ever imagine being to anyone else.

Rick put his glass down on the counter and took Kate's, placing it next to his so he could wrap both of his arms around her. "Can I tell you something?" He pulled her close, but she pulled him even closer. He took that as the go ahead. "I love you," he whispered. He didn't hesitate and he looked her right in the eyes. "I don't expect you to say it back right now, and I won't get hurt. I just need you to know I love you."

Kate knew she wasn't being rushed, but hearing those words didn't freak her out like they normally would. Being in his arms was like being home and hearing those words reminded her that her home was wherever he was. She didn't even have to think about it, she knew she was ready. "I love you too."

Neither of them felt a need to question what they heard. In fact, trying to speak after their confessions was quickly proving itself to be impossible. Words failed them, so they did what they could leaned in together, getting caught in what was meant to be a simple kiss. The heat got the best of them fast. Kate felt Rick's hand move up her body and rest at the hem of her shirt, hesitant. She grabbed his hand and slipped it under the fabric, smiling as she slipped her hand away and felt him explore her body.

They were alone at her apartment without any chance of Martha or Alexis walking in, and she was more than willing to take advantage of it. Feeling his hand unclasping her bra underneath her shirt, she knew he was ready too. They helped each other out of their shirts and took a moment to appreciate that they were seeing more of each other than ever before. She reached down and found him, smiling as he moaned against her lips. She moved up slowly to unbuckle his belt and once she pulled it free, she tossed it to the floor.

The two of them made their way to the bedroom, open mouths locked. By the time they fell back onto the bed, their bodies were completely exposed, their clothes making a scattered trail from the kitchen to the bedroom.

Kate watched Rick on top of her, hovering over her. Her body ached for his, wanting to be in contact with every inch of him. He excited her and she needed him more than anything. She knew he felt the same desire, an undeniable hardness pressing her inner thigh.

"Are you ready?" he whispered. Though hardly it was a question, she admired that he asked. She let out a soft moan and grabbed his hips between her hands to let him know she was. He pulled his lips away from hers as he pushed inside of her, in time to hear her scream out with pleasure.


	9. Chapter 9

One foot at a time, Kate slowly made her way down the stairs. She didn't turn the lights on so she wouldn't wake anyone up. She wasn't used to having to worry about that, but she knew it was going to become a lot more familiar to her soon enough. This relationship with Rick was very promising, considering everything they've been through together to get to this point. They were finally on the same page and now that they were there, she was going to hold onto him with everything she had. For once though, she felt comfortable in a relationship. She knew that she didn't have to hold on for dear life because he was going to keep a tight grip on her as well. There was something extremely satisfying about being with someone who was returning the hundred percent she was giving.

She smiled as she thought to herself about the moment that had just passed with her sleeping boyfriend minutes before. It wasn't like Kate to sleep the entire night uninterrupted, even in the comfort of Rick's arms. The sun was still hiding behind the darkness, but her body told her it was time to get up. She opened her eyes to find her back to Rick and his arms holding her close from behind. It was at that moment that Kate found out he was a fan of spooning. God he was adorable.

The only reason she got up was because she left her phone in the kitchen. After getting back with him from her apartment, the two dropped everything they had and went up to bed to sleep off any leftover desires they had from earlier. Alexis and Martha were home, so they ignored most of their impulses with much difficulty.

Kate picked up her phone from the counter and let out a sigh of relief when she saw that she didn't miss anything important. She would hate to hear the captain if she didn't show up to work, had there been a murder in the middle of the night. She had a feeling that their next call would go to Rick if she didn't answer, seeing how everyone knew they were together now. It would be just like them to expect the two to always be together. Seeing how things were going, that would be completely valid.

Just as she was about to turn to go back upstairs, she heard movement, and turned her head to the living room just as a heavy eyed Alexis rose up from the couch. When she saw Kate, a smile pulled from her lips. "What time is it?" she asked as she made her way into the kitchen.

"Time to go to bed," the detective smirked and looked at her phone to see the time. The light illuminating from it made both Kate and Alexis squint their eyes from the unwelcomed brightness. "It's two thirty."

"Are you leaving?" Alexis asked softly, but not soft enough to mask the disappointment. Little things like this reminded Kate that she could never let this family down. She wasn't planning on it, but Rick's daughter definitely encouraged her to do her best at this whole relationship business.

Finally, she shook her head to ease the old soul. "I'm not going anywhere. I just needed to get my phone unless I get called into work."

"So early?" clearly the thought of being up so early for work freaked Alexis out. She was full of rules that her father was too easy going to set. She had a ten thirty bedtime on weekdays and was generous enough to give herself until eleven on weekends.

"You never know when someone's going to get the urge to kill," she said with a smirk. "Unfortunately I can't control that."

Alexis nodded. "This is true," she said as she let out a yawn.

"Go back to sleep Alexis," Kate said as she turned Alexis toward the stairs. She placed her hand on her back as she led her up.

Alexis walked with Kate up the stairs. "I can't believe I fell asleep on the couch. Don't tell my dad."

The brunette smiled to herself. "Your secret's safe with me, rebel child."

Alexis caught on to the sarcasm and laughed softly, though she didn't argue since they were both so obviously tired. "Goodnight Kate," she whispered as they reached the top of the stairs and wrapped her arms around Kate, pulling her into a hug.

Kate smiled as she returned the hug and kissed the top of head. She didn't think much about it until after she did it. This family certainly had a hold of her. "Goodnight," she whispered.

"You should stay here for a couple days," Alexis said as they pulled away from their embrace. "I like when you're here, and you make my dad really happy."

"I was going to ask you how you felt about that in the morning," she said with a soft chuckle. "He had me pack for a couple days, but I just wanted to make sure you were okay with it. I felt like asking now while you're half asleep would be a total cheap shot."

"I'd want you here either way. My answer is always going to be the same," she walked over to her door. "Night."

"Night," Kate slipped into Rick's room and closed the door behind her. She walked over to the bed and climbed in carefully, getting under the covers after she placed her phone on the nightstand.

Rick moved in his sleep, now facing the other way. Kate wrapped her arms around him from behind and kissed his neck. He began to stir and finally looked over his shoulder, barely awake. He was so cute.

"Where did you go?" he asked, his voice almost inaudible.

She brought a hand up to caress his hair gently. "I just went to get my phone in case I get called into work."

"You'll wake me up if you do, right?"

She smiled. "You want to come?"

"Why wouldn't I?"

"I thought you might want to sleep in before meeting up with me. Don't worry, if I get a call, I'll wake you up."

"Good. For a minute I thought you didn't want me to."

She wanted to crack a couple jokes with him, but he was being adorable, using everything he had to stay awake to hold this conversation. "Of course I want you to come. I love having you with me," she kissed his neck again.

He was quiet for a minute, so Kate assumed he fell back asleep. She got rested her body comfortably against his as she held him. Finally, he spoke again. "You're spooning me."

She wanted to laugh, but she knew she wouldn't be able to stop if she did. "You did it first."

He placed a hand over hers. "I'm not complaining."

"No?" she smiled against his skin as leaned her head on his shoulder.

"I like when you do this."

"I like it too."

"I like it more," he mumbled as he fought to stay awake.

"No you don't."

"I love it."

"I love it too," she was falling asleep now too, but for some reason, she could never let go of her stubbornness.

"I love you."

"I love you too baby, now go to sleep," she whispered as she pulled him closer. She knew how tired he was when he didn't object and listened as his breathing steadied. He was already out.

She kissed his shoulder, unable to help being so affectionate toward him. She leaned her head on the pillow and kept Rick close as she closed her eyes, quickly drifting off to sleep.


	10. Chapter 10

"I don't want to go home," Rick groaned. Kate looked over at him expressionless as he whined. "I want to stay with you."

"I know you do," she said softly as they walked side by side. She reached for his hand and offered it a gentle squeeze. "But don't you think you should spend a little alone time with Alexis?"

He nodded. "Of course, but she's probably with Ashley anyway."

The detective shook her head. "No she isn't. She's studying," when Rick looked over at her with an adorable curiosity, she smirked. "I texted her to see what she was doing and she said she was in doing homework. Are you sure she's your kid?"

Rick shrugged his shoulders. "God forbid there was a switch up at birth, I'm keeping Alexis. I wouldn't be able to handle a kid like me."

They laughed and Rick let go of her hand to wrap his arm around her waist. Kate smiled up at him and kissed his cheek as they headed down the sidewalk. "Anyway, she's being awesome about us being together and I don't want to ruin it. She's sharing you with me so I need to be fair and share you too."

It wasn't a chore for Rick to spend time with his daughter. They were very close and Kate always loved that about him. She knew he was worried that something would happen to her. She was the cop and constantly had to watch his back, but he'd worry regardless. She couldn't exactly deny that he endangered his own life a couple times to save her own. They were literally the couple that would take a bullet for the other and she loved that.

"What are you going to do when the Nikki Heat books are done?" she asked. He was shadowing her for the sake of his series. Well, that was supposed to be the reason anyway.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Well I was kind of hoping on writing them forever so I could always protect you."

She stopped them in their tracks and turned to face him. "Please stop being so adorable," she kissed his lips, loving the privilege of being able to show the rest of the world that they were together. Public displays of affection never meant so much to her until now. She was proud of their relationship. "As adorable as you are, I'm a big girl. I can protect myself."

Kate Beckett was a strong woman, but Rick wanted to be the one to protect her anyway. "I know you're a big girl," he smiled he held her close. "But you're my girl. I don't know what your past relationships were like, but I want us to be different. I want you to let me do things for you."

"I let you bring my coffee to work," she said with a smirk, a laugh escaping her lips when Rick grinned. He was great for joking around and was a good sport when the joke was on him.

"Please stop making me," he was smiling from ear to ear. "I'm trying to have a serious conversation right now."

"Doesn't it suck when you're trying to talk about something serious and the other person keeps joking around?" she winked.

He kissed her forehead. "Okay, point taken," he rested his hand on the small of her back and they walked the small space between themselves and Kate's car. He slid his hand down her back and stopped when he came to her butt. She looked up at him wordlessly. "I can't help myself sometimes. Sorry."

"Doesn't bother me," she reached back and slapped him, laughing as he jumped. "I can't help myself either."

He kissed her cheek, wanting to get as much of her as he could before they'd be separated, even if it was only for a couple hours. "Can I drive?" he would go as slow as possible so he could hang onto her for a little longer.

"I have a feeling you'd crash my car or something," he pulled her keys out of her pocket. When Rick reached for them, she went to put them down her shirt when she realized that wouldn't stop him. Seeing the look on his face let her know that he was thinking the same thing. "The answer is no," the detective unlocked her car and pointed over to the passenger seat before getting in.

Rick was quiet for a minute and got in the passenger side, sporting a pout that Kate hated to love. "So you're going under cover without me?" he was now stating the obvious and exactly what they've been talking about. He knew it wasn't permanent. She wasn't wrong for wanting him to spend time alone with Alexis and of course he wanted time with his daughter. He just didn't want to have to worry about his girlfriend the entire time he was with his daughter.

"Yes, I'm going under cover without you. I love my job a lot more when you're around but I can survive the night," as she drove, she reached over and took Rick's hand. "Besides, I have Esposito and Ryan for the night. They'll have my back. Does that make you feel any better?"

He gave her hand a gentle squeeze. "You know you could have told me that before."

"I know," he glanced over quickly, flashing him a grin. "It was sort of adorable how you worried so I thought I'd humor myself for a couple minutes."

"Katherine Beckett."

"Richard Castle."

"Katherine."

"Richard."

"Katherine Beckett, I am not giving up."

"Why are we even doing this?" she asked as she let out a giggle.

He shrugged his shoulders. "Because you're being very mean to me right now and I'm right to have the upper hand by using your full name and intimidating you."

Kate nodded her head, her eyes on the road ahead of her. "Oh, I see. And how's that going for you?"

"Honestly, not so well. I think I would be a little more intimidating if I knew your middle name."

She laughed. "Forget it."

"Katherine Beckett."

She shook her head. "We're not playing that game again."

He managed a straight face even. "I want to know everything about you. You've been opening up a lot since we met, but I want to know it all. Can we start with middle names? If you tell me yours, I'll tell you mine."

"Baby, you're a celebrity," she pointed out and it was weird to say. She's been a fan of his way before they met but once he started shadowing her, she got to know him on such a personal level that he wasn't an author when she first glanced at him. He was the man she was choosing to spend all of her time with. "Everyone knows your middle name. Or at least your fans do."

"Speaking of," he let the middle name thing go fast and Kate knew better than to think it wouldn't come up again in a couple minutes. If not then, it would by the end of the day. She could picture them later in bed, falling asleep, and him bringing it up as casually as a courteous 'good night.' "Now that we're dating, do you want to tell me how big of a fan you actually are?"

She killed the engine once she parked, front end sticking out since there wasn't enough room. Without a word, she pulled her hand free of Rick's and got out of the car. That was something she didn't want to get into. She knew she'd end up telling him eventually, but on the streets rushing to get back to work wasn't the time or place. He had a disappointed look on his face, she noticed as she looked back at him. With a sigh, she held out her hand and once he accepted it, she walked into the building with him.

Rick finally broke the silence once they were on his floor and opening the door to his loft. "Do you need a ride?" he followed behind Kate, upstairs to his bedroom. He knew that was pointless since she told him just a couple minutes before that she didn't think he'd be a good driver.

"Esposito and Ryan are taking me. They'll probably be here in a minute," she grabbed her bag and sat on the bed as she dug through it. "I just have to change."

Rick closed the door and laid on the bed. He watched Kate pull out folded black fabric. She stood up and without an ounce of shame she pulled her shirt over her head and tossed it to the floor. She kicked off her heels and lost a couple inches, but still stood tall as she slipped her pants off. When she noticed him looking, she winked playfully with a smile that left him wondering how one person could be so beautiful. "You don't have a couple minutes for me?"

"I have to be ready in a minute. They won't be late. They're cops," she unhooked her bra and took it off, seeing the hungry look Richard was giving her. "Sorry," she stepped back in her heels and picked up the dress she had on the bed. She slipped it on and smoothed out the black lace dress. It stopped mid thigh, showing off her slim legs that went for miles and a dramatic 'v' that exposed enough cleavage to get Richard swallowing loud enough or her to hear.

"Baby," he sat up and encircled his hand around Kate's wrist. He pulled her to stand between his legs and let his eyes travel up her body until their eyes met. "People are going to be seeing you like this and they're going to want you."

Kate wasn't expecting this. In the past, he loved when they were going under cover and she ended up in something sexy. Although that was before they were dating and he'd take what he could. Now he was the protective boyfriend and she didn't know just what to do. "It's fine."

He shook his head. "No it's not. I don't think I want people looking at you like that."

"Is that what you think?" she raised a brow.

"No. I know I don't want people to see you like this."

She wasn't used to being told what to do, especially by Rick. It caught her off guard to say the least. "Did you just say no?" she needed to be sure she heard that right.

He was used to be the laid back funny guy and Kate being the one with all the power. This even shocked himself, but the thought of his girlfriend going out without him dressed in next to nothing was something he wouldn't accept.

"I'm going to a club to find a man who killed a prostitute. I have to look the part or else he'll never talk to me. I need to get him cornered Rick, you know that."

"You can catch anyone's attention regardless of what you're wearing. Put on some clothes Kate."

After a stare down, Rick reached back with his free hand and took Kate's bag. He started to sift through it. She pulled her wrist free of his grasp and stepped back. "You need to stop being insecure Rick. Drop it right now," she was trying to gain control of the situation. "I could walk in there naked and they're still just staring. You're the only person who gets to touch me and that's the way I want it."

Rick opened his mouth to speak but just as he did, she lifted her dress and worked to rest her gun and badge against her inner thigh. A few seconds later, her dress was covering it and he finally realized how she did it all this time. Right at that moment he wanted to get her out of her dress. That was exactly why he didn't want her to be seen like this. She was too beautiful and far too sexy.

"Let me ask you something," Kate's words had Rick looking her in the eyes. "Who am I coming home to tonight?" When he didn't answer, she cocked her head to the side. "Exactly. You're my one and done, we've been over this," the doorbell rang and she grabbed her phone. "I love you," she leaned over and kissed him gently on the lips and started to walk out.

"Katherine Marie Beckett."

"Not my middle name."

"It is until I know your real one," he stood up and started to walk after her. "Change your clothes."

She picked up the pace and from behind she heard him gaining on her. She went down the stairs, skipping one with every step. She was almost jogging when she saw Martha and Alexis in the kitchen with Esposito and Ryan. She slowed down to a normal walk and seconds later, Rick took her hand.

Alexis and Martha smiled when they saw Kate. "Oh darling, you look wonderful," her boyfriend's mother said as his daughter nodded in agreement. She looked over her shoulder at Rick and smirked.

"Don't encourage her."

She rolled her eyes and turned to face him. "We'll talk about this later."

He knew she won the fight and even though he was mad, he kissed her softly and slipped a set of keys in her hand. "Don't forget to lock up when you get in."

She could tell he wasn't happy with her decision, but they'd talk about it later. She wasn't going to let a murderer get away and Rick would understand it once he calmed down. "Okay. I love you."

No matter how mad he was, he couldn't leave her hanging. "Love you," he looked over at Esposito and Ryan and waved before going back up to his room without another word.

There was a desperate need to break the tension. Thank god for Esposito.

"I love that dress."

Kate hugged Martha and Alexis before leading her fellow detectives out. "You should. I took it from you."

* * *

"I'm sorry," Kate whispered as she wrapped her arms around Rick from behind and rested her head on the pillow. Her legs, now covered by yoga pants tangled with his as she relaxed her weight into his. She didn't know if he was awake, but she needed to tell him in case he was up. "I know I upset you and I didn't mean to. I'm not used to being told what to do and even though I don't like, I get it."

When she left, she wasn't expecting to be the one apologizing by the time she was crawling in bed with him. "I love you so much and maybe you're a little possessive over me. I want to say that's not good, but I can't. I hate when other women even look at you. I always did and I know it's going to get worse now," she kissed the back of his neck. "We'll figure out how to deal with it all. I have all the patience in the world for you and I hope you do for me."

He didn't answer. She'd have to say it again in the morning. She didn't want to, but she was willing to do anything for him to stop being angry with her. Throughout the night, the guilt ate away at her. She was so happy to be back in his bed with him where she belonged.

Rick laid quietly, wanting to answer and let her know that everything would be alright. More importantly, he wanted to tell her that he loved her. Since he couldn't turn around and hold her, he was thankful to have her hold him.

But something wasn't right and that was why he stayed so quiet. Something in her voice told him that something else was wrong. He waited it out and once her breathing steadied, signaling that she was asleep, he carefully turned his body around to look at her. The moonlight came in through the window and was enough for Rick to see that Kate had been crying. He kissed a dry trail of tears and wrapped an arm around her waist, startled when she flinched at his touch. He lifted her shirt and felt a wave of anger take over him. Not toward Kate, but toward the person who put the fresh bruises on her ribs.

Now he understood why she was so fast to have a change of heart. After a rough night like this, he ruled out gloating and held her close to keep her safe. He was never leaving her to go under cover without him again. He couldn't let anyone hurt his girl again.


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: Thanks for your patience everyone. I've been crazy busy, but I am NOT abandoning this account or my fics. So much studying lately. I've been shocking myself. Also, this is very random, but there's lots of writers here... anyone into roleplaying? I'm trying out Kate Beckett and I have an Alexis. We need everyone else and hopeful. Desperate? Absolutely. =) Message me if you're interested. If not, ignore this and enjoy the stories. Thanks for your support loves!**

* * *

Kate smiled when she saw Richard coming down the stairs as she stood over the stove, transferring the rest of the scrambled eggs onto a plate. Alexis and Martha were already seated and helping themselves to pancakes. "Good morning."

Rick smiled back at her as he kissed his daughter and mother on the cheek, making his way to his girlfriend. Once he reached her, he pulled her into his arms and kissed the top of her head. "You're cooking? How did I end up being the luckiest man alive?"

The detective smiled up at Rick and kissed him gently on the lips. "Count your blessings," she teased and quickly kissed him again before he could say anything. As she pulled away, she saw the smile pulling from his lips.

"Yeah dad, don't mess this up," Alexis cut in. The couple looked over at her with matching smiles. "Kate's pretty much the best thing that's happened to us in a while. And I'm not just saying that because she cooks," she added with a smirk.

"Yeah I cook for you guys," Kate laughed as she pulled away from him and grabbed a plate. She filled it and handed it to Rick. "Please keep me around."

He accepted the plate and looked at her with such a serious look on her face; she just bit her lip instead of speaking. "I've wanted to be with you for so long, so don't even go there Katherine Jaclyn Beckett."

Kate tried her best not to laugh but failed. "Still trying to figure out the middle name there, I see?"

"Why won't you just tell me woman?" He watched her make a plate for herself and when she didn't answer, he looked over at Alexis and Martha. "She won't tell me her middle name."

"Richard, are you whining?" Martha rolled her eyes. "It's not attractive darling. So she doesn't want to tell you her middle name? So what? I think you know more personal things about her that you shouldn't even be worried about something so insignificant."

The novelist looked from Kate to his mother. "I think you just proved my point."

"Well I certainly didn't mean to."

"But if Kate and I are on such a personal level, which we are, then why should she care about me knowing her middle name?"

Martha opened her mouth to speak, but the argument was lost. Her son had made a decent point.

"I don't think middle names matter," Alexis cut in. "You know her first and last name. You know all the little things about her and better yet, you know she's with you."

Kate placed a hand on Rick's shoulder and smirked up at him. "Listen to your daughter."

He shook his head. "She's just saying that because she doesn't like her middle name."

The young redhead turned her head to Kate, a dead serious look on her face. "My mother spelled it wrong on my birth certificate."

Rick stifled a laugh. "That woman has issues. Don't let it get to you."

Before Rick could say anything, Kate ripped off a piece of her pancake and stuck it in his mouth. "Okay so we established that middle names don't really matter. Thank you Alexis," she smiled over at her and kissed Rick on the cheek as he chewed his food. "And you. Well you're even cuter when you're silent."

Rick thought it over for a moment and ultimately decided to drop the argument. A dorky smile pulled from his lips, his cheeks puffed out from his food.

Martha groaned with light disgust. "You didn't get that from me. Swallow your food already."

There was a knock at the door and Alexis offered to get it before anyone else could. Kate looked up at Rick, who was pouting while having a stare down with his mother. "Listen to your mother."

She loved how she fit right in with his family, even though there was an undeniable tension between herself and Rick at the moment. Maybe no one else felt it, but they never officially resolved their issues from the night before. She tried, but he was sleeping. Maybe they were just going to forget about it? Than again this was Richard Castle. He didn't just let things go.

"Dad, Kate," Alexis called out. "Detectives Ryan and Esposito are here," she came back into view and sure enough the men followed from behind. "I'm going to get changed," she decided tactically and disappeared. Martha offered a 'hello' and excused herself as well.

"Don't you guys have a home?" Kate asked with a lighthearted smile. "Seriously, what are you doing here?" she began to clear the table.

"Well isn't this cute," Ryan smirked. "You're all just one big happy family."

"You cooked?" Esposito added. "Did you make Alexis a brown paper bag lunch too?"

She rolled her eyes. "Actually I was thinking about making cookies for the school bake sale, but I need to look the part. I'd like my mom jeans back," she leaned against the counter, just waiting for the actual topic to come up. Rick was quiet and picked up from where Kate left off, running the sink to wash the dishes.

"Do you know how to answer a phone? Either of you?" Esposito asked.

"Mine is upstairs," she flashed a guilty look. "Rick's must be too or else he would have answered. What's going on?"

"Our guy from last night claims he had someone helping him, but he won't give up any names," Ryan said in a professional manner.

Thinking about the man from the night before gave Kate the chills. Without thinking, she ran a hand over her ribs and flinched gently at the contact she'd made. It would be sore for a while. "He couldn't be lying to divert the attention."

"Could be," Ryan agreed. "But we need to check on it and we just wanted to give you an update. When you didn't answer, we got worried."

Kate ignored the last part of what he said and tried to keep the conversation going when she noticed Rick glance over curiously. "We'll see what we could find at his apartment. But trust me, I think this was a one man job."

Esposito shrugged. "Probably. Hell, I'd be looking for a distraction too if I was facing murder. Oh and let's not forget about assaulting a cop. How're you doing anyway?"

Wide eyed, she looked over her shoulder to find Rick looking at her. Glaring would actually be most accurate. It wasn't supposed to happen like this.

Ryan and Esposito felt the tension and looked at each other. "Awkward," Ryan mumbled. "We're going to get to work. See you later? Alive? Maybe."

What was worse than Rick finding out about her getting hurt on the job like this, was her team bailing on her right after. She didn't want to fight but she knew Rick would say something either way. Once they were gone, she looked back over at him, a look both guilty and scared. "I'm sorry."

"That you got hurt? Don't be Kate," he walked over to her and he had a feeling he'd be angry with her if he hadn't noticed the bruising the night before and found out from their friends. He couldn't forget her reaction to the pain. The more he thought about it, the guiltier he felt. "I noticed it last night."

She let him pull up the shirt she'd borrowed from him, biting her lip when she saw the look on his face. She knew exactly what he was thinking. "This would have happened whether you were there or not. I know you're not going to believe it, but the timing was just bad."

"I'd like to believe that, but either way you got hurt. I could have protected you," he frowned.

The detective hated this. Dealing with the fact that someone actually hurt her was slightly annoying, but knowing that her boyfriend was going to blame himself was worse. She'd tease him to lighten the mood and tell him that she needed to protect him most of the time, but that wasn't true at this point. He was more helpful than aggravating.

"He was trying to run, so I went after him. I tackled him and he punched me. He pulled a gun, but I'm faster than that," she smiled softly. "It also helped that Esposito nearly knocked the guy out."

Castle kissed Kate's forehead and sighed. "I'm going to have to thank him later," he pulled her close and sighed. "I just wish you could have told me yourself this morning."

"I didn't want to worry your mother and Alexis. I was going to tell you, but they had to come out of nowhere and spill," she sighed. "I'm sorry. I wanted to tell you," she kissed his neck.

"I believe you." Rick wasn't just saying it. He trusted her with everything he had. "Katherine Cynthia Beckett."

She looked up at him, a smirk on her face. "It's Nada."

He raised a brow. "Excuse me?"

"My middle name is Nada."

"Tell me it means 'nothing'."

She hit his chest lightly with the back of her hand. "Close. It actually means 'hope' in Croatian. Nice try though. If you joke around and laugh about it, I know how to use a gun."

If only he could count all the times he heard that. "I love it baby," he whispered, moving her hair out of her eyes. "Katherine Nada Beckett," as beautiful as it was, he couldn't help but chuckle a little.

She pulled away from him and tried to hide a smirk as she rolled her eyes. "You suck."


End file.
